Thesis

"... who's the best avatar of them all?" - Optimal design of digital advisors

Permanent availability, a wide product selection, automated transactions - these are just 3 reasons for growing online trade.

However, social interaction, advisory support or simply a short conversation with a salesperson usually fall by the wayside. However, the relationship with salespeople plays a central role in the purchasing decision and contributes to customer satisfaction. Companies are therefore increasingly relying on digital advisors or avatars.
To justify the high financial outlay of programming a digital advisor, it must therefore be ensured that the advisor also meets the requirements of potential consumers.
The focus is therefore on the optimal design of an avatar that advises consumers and supports them in their decisions.


From a scientific perspective, exciting questions arise, such as what makes an avatar appear particularly socially present; what role does the attractiveness and appearance of the avatar play; how should interaction with the avatar proceed; how do customers react to the new offer and how do they perceive this type of advice?

The aim of this thesis is to examine different forms of design in an online experiment in order to be able to derive recommendations for action.

Please attach a short motivation letter of your application to your request (Wittich@time.rwth-aachen.de).

Keywords: Customer Experience; Service Marketing; Retail Solutions; Consumer Behavior; Strategic Marketing